Black, Red, and Gold
by CalicoJacky
Summary: Black and Potter find themselves abandoned in Diagon Alley the day before school starts.
1. Default Chapter

Diagon Alley  
  
Sirius Black was tall for his age. He was long and lanky and was growing out of all of his clothes. He had a wavy chin length mess as hair and his eyes were a handsome brown. He had a wolfish grin and a sarcastic sense of humor. And he always wore the same chain necklace, with a small 'S' on it. But yet, as normal as he looked, Sirius Black was not normal. He grew up in a pureblood family of wizards. His mother was a vicious supporter of believing that muggle-born wizards should be deprived of learning magic. Though he grew up knowing that he would be accepted into the Wizarding world; he was still thoroughly excited when his letter came announcing his acceptance into Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
  
"Mum, Dad, it came! It came!" Sirius thundered into the parlor, where his mother was currently having tea, with his father. The parlor was a relatively large room, painted a cream color with light blue trimming. Sirius disliked this room, having been told off by his mother many times in it. When he stopped jumping up and down, he saw that his father was dressed in his best Wizarding robes, and that his mother was wearing an olive green muggle dress. His father, Theodore Black, had his wand in his hand and was lighting a candle. His mother, Aurelia Black, was shocked at how Sirius bounded into the room.  
  
"My dear, what came?" Aurelia looked stubbornly stern; Theodore looked pleased. Sirius grinned and brushed his hair out of his eyes.  
  
"My Hogwarts letter came at last! We can go to Diagon Alley now!" He grinned again and plopped down on a couch, which made a cloud of dust fly into the air. Theodore smiled and stood up from his spindly chair.  
  
"Good job son. If Aurelia doesn't mind, we can go to Diagon Alley today. How `bout it?" Aurelia rolled her eyes slightly and sat up straight. She sighed and raised a hand to pull a piece of hair out of her eyes. Then she stood up and straightened her dress.  
  
"Go ahead. Take Regulus as well. He needs new formal robes for the ceremonial dinner tonight." Aurelia strode out of the room, leaving Sirius and his father. Regulus was Sirius's younger brother; he was too young to go to Hogwarts. Sirius rolled his eyes, but only after his mother left. He always brought Regulus along. Theodore, who was much taller than Sirius looked down at him.  
  
"We won't bring Regulus along. We'll buy him robes, but this is your special day, not Regulus'. Come on son, go get some decent clothes on." Sirius grinned and jumped back up stairs. He had always liked his dad more than his mom. Sirius threw on some Wizarding robes and slowly walked downstairs. I'm going to Hogwarts! I get to learn magic. But you were expecting this; this is nothing new to you. He thought all the way downstairs. When he passed Regulus' room, he saw that the door was open. He dared a peek inside, only to see Regulus staring at the ceiling watching a magical poster of his favorite rock band. The drummer had broken one of his drumsticks. Sirius sneezed. Regulus looked at the doorway.  
  
"What do you want Sirius?" Regulus threw his legs over the side of his bed, which was covered in dirty clothes.  
  
"I got my letter. I'm going to Hogwarts. You get to stay here and stare at your bedroom walls. Fun." Sirius stuck out his tongue and raced down another set of stairs. When he reached the entrance hallway, his dad was waiting for him.  
  
"What took you so long? I just asked you to change." Sirius knew his dad wasn't angry. He saw his dad had changed into another set of robes. Theodore didn't like to show that his was wealthy, and Sirius liked him for that.  
  
"How're we getting there? I can't Apparate!" His dad looked down at him. He grinned.  
  
"Course you can't. We'll be traveling by Floo Powder. You're mother hates traveling like this, says it's too cheap. I prefer it though, quicker than any broom or train." Theodore led Sirius into the kitchen, where a humongous fireplace stood. A fire was merrily cracking in it. A flowerpot, which held Floo Powder, hung next to it. Theodore took the flowerpot and handed it to Sirius. Sirius took the last handful of powder and threw it into the flames, which turned a lime green, and then he stepped into the flames. Sirius shouted, "Diagon Alley!" and went spinning away.  
  
Traveling by Floo Powder wasn't very comfortable. Your arms would hit the walls of chimneys and it was unbearably hot. Sometimes the spinning would make you sick, but Sirius agreed, there was no other quicker means of travel.  
  
Sirius started to spin slower. Then, with a FWOOM, he landed in the back fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron. Dizzily, he stepped out of the fireplace and looked around the room. The wallpaper was peeling slightly, and the window looked as though it hadn't been washed in ages. A great deal of wooden chairs was spread around the room. Sirius collapsed into one of them. He waited patiently for his dad, who, Sirius knew, was planning to Apparate. A minute later, then the flames in the fireplace were turning lime green, and another person arrived with a FWOOM. It wasn't Theodore though; it looked like a boy, a boy around Sirius's age. He collapsed into the chair next to Sirius.  
  
"Hullo." Said the boy. The boy had black hair, very messy. He wore glasses, a metal frame. His clothes said enough to explain that he was pureblood as well. He was wearing a Quidditch shirt, and an old pair of jeans. The boy had light blue eyes.  
  
"Hullo." Said Sirius, answering the newcomer. The boy looked familiar.  
  
"What's your name? You look familiar." The boy tilted his head and took his glasses off; they were smudged with soot from the fire. He wiped them on his pants and put them back on.  
  
"You look familiar too. My name's James. James Potter. How bout you?" the boy said. Potter. That rang a bell in Sirius's head. AH! Potter, that was the name of a player on England's Quidditch team. Sirius grinned his wolfish smile.  
  
"I'm Sirius Black. You're dad's a Quidditch player, isn't he?" Sirius looked at James. James grinned back at Sirius.  
  
"Yeah, that's right. Your dad's a Ministry worker, am I right?" James answered. Sirius looked about the room again, as though searching for an answer. So, he nodded.  
"Yeah. You a first year as well? I just got my letter today." Sirius said. James fiddled with the edge of his shirt.  
  
"First year it is! I got my letter a week ago. Who are you waiting for? My mum is supposed to be Apparating." Sirius fiddled with a Galleon in his pocket.  
  
"My dad. I don't know what happened to him. Want to go out front? They'll eventually find us. Diagon Alley's not that big. We can also leave a note with the bartender." James looked reproachful. James never really had a Wizarding friend before. All of his old friends had been muggles.  
  
"Sure, why not. It's getting boring in here anyway." James and Sirius stood up brushed off their clothes and walked out of the room. After peeking around a bit, they found their way to the front.  
  
Once out front, they saw wizards buying drinks, witches talking about the latest fashions, trolls comparing gold, and the bartender speaking about fifty different languages at once. When the bartender saw them, he smiled, revealing many missing teeth.  
  
"Hello, young sirs. And why, look who it is, young Potter! What can I get for you today?" the bartender wiped his hands off on a small rag. Sirius grinned. He loved being in the Wizarding world. Everything was so different.  
  
"Sorry, Tom. We don't need anything, but for you to open the way to Diagon Alley, and to leave a note for our parents." James said friendly. Tom placed his hands on the bar.  
  
"Ahh. Well, finally got the letter, did `ja now Potter? Now, what is this leaving a note for your parents?" Tom came out from behind the bar. It was Sirius who spoke this time.  
  
"Our parents, that is, my dad, and his mum, were supposed to be Apparating here. They haven't come yet, and that's wasting valuable sunlight, to be shopping in," Sirius paused to breathe, and then went on, "so can you leave them a note, telling them that, Sirius Black and James Potter are out shopping?" Tom smiled and nodded.  
  
"Sure thing! Now follow me and I'll open the way." He led them out back, into a small courtyard. He took out a wand and tapped a brick above the trashcans. Magically, the wall opened to reveal a large shopping alley. Sirius and James turned back to Tom.  
  
"Thanks!" Tom waved as they stepped out into the alleyway. Everywhere Sirius looked was magic. In the display case of Flourish and Blott's, a book was reading itself. In the window of Madame Malkin's Robes of All Occasions, a piece of cloth was making robes. In a magical creatures shop, little orange fuzz balls were jittering about and a large parrot was popping from a perch on the wall to a perch on the floor.  
  
"Have you ever been here before?" asked James, seeing the amazed look on Sirius's face. Sirius nodded. He had been here before, but each time, it always amazed him.  
"Yes, I have been here before, but every time I come, something changes. It's always so amazing." James laughed at Sirius's seriousness.  
  
"Well, where do you think we should go first? I'd say go and get the boring books. And then work our way down." James pointed down the road, to the very last shop, which was Flourish and Blott's. Sirius shrugged. He didn't care; he just wanted to get his wand and magical creature.  
  
"Alright, well, let's go."  
  
So they went to Flourish and Blott's. Inside there was every book you could imagine. There were small ones, as small as a postage stamp, and large ones, so large it could take up your whole desk. There were books that read themselves out loud when you opened them, books that weren't really books, just paintings pretending. Sirius was so amazed at one, that he picked it up, opened it, and started to read, when, it clamped shut on his hand. James thought this was funny, but helped Sirius unclamp the book.  
  
When they were done in Flourish and Blott's and all the other stores, they stopped at Magical Menagerie. The shop was filled with animals, and distinctly smelled like rotten cabbage. There were cats of every breed, frogs, toads, newts, owls, and little orange fuzz balls that hummed. Sirius thought this had to be the best shop yet. James walked up to a cage with a very large and handsome tawny owl. He saw a tag with the price on it and carried the cage up to the counter.  
  
"I've always wanted my own owl. What about you, Sirius?" James looked back at Sirius, who was staring up at the many cages of owls.  
  
"Yeah, I've always wanted one. My dad would never buy me one though. Said it would have to wait until Hogwarts. I think this one's rather nice." Sirius pointed to a smaller black spotted barn owl, with large yellow eyes. It hooted softly, while Sirius checked the price. He then carried up to the counter, placing it along side James's. James paid for his owl and waited for Sirius. The shopkeeper looked at Sirius menacingly. Sirius grinned wolfishly and slapped the money on the counter.  
  
"There you go! Have a nice day!" Sirius grabbed his owl and walked out of the shop, James right beside him. They walked out into the sunlight, joking about the shopkeeper.  
  
"He looked like he was about to explode." Said Sirius, whose laugh almost sounded like a bark. James laughed along with him.  
  
"Yeah, I thought he was about to start growling at you. Didn't look like a happy chap, now did he?" James stopped walking at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. He placed down his packages and fell into a nearby lawn chair.  
  
"I'm starting to worry bout our parents mate. They should have been here a long time ago. I wonder what's come up. Let's have a chat with the owner of this place." James slapped his hands on the metal table and pointed to the ice cream parlor.  
  
A waiter came out from the parlor and walked up to the two boys. He was an aging man, with white hair and icy blue eyes. He was wearing a red and white striped shirt with the words, FLOREAN FORTESCUE'S ICE CREAM! ONE OF THE BEST, embroidered in yellow on his shirt. His wand was stuck in an apron, which was tied around his waist.  
  
"Hello young sirs. My name is Florean Fortescue, owner of this fine ice cream parlor. May I interest you in a pecan nut sundae? Or something more unusual?" He smiled at James and Sirius, who grinned happily. James shook his head.  
  
"Ah, I wish we could, Mr. Fortescue, but we are looking for our parents. Sirius's dad and my mom. They were supposed to Apparate back at the Leaky Cauldron, but they haven't yet, and well, you can guess, we've been worried." James looked heartily back at Mr. Fortescue.  
  
Mr. Fortescue sighed. He looked around, as if searching for an answer. He shoved his hands into his pockets.  
  
"My dear friends come inside, away from the sun. I'll tell you all about it inside." They followed him inside the shop, leaving their owls on a tabletop. The shop was brightly lit with red and white striped wallpaper, with yellow and white checked flooring. Mr. Fortescue gave them free ice cream cones, their pick. Sirius picked a chocolate chip one, James, on the other hand, preferred a strawberry cone. At last, Mr. Fortescue sat down with them.  
  
"Now, my friends. I don't like to be the bearer of bad news, but what'd you imagine is only worse." He paused to think. Sirius and James were thinking the worst. My dad can't be dead. No, he hasn't died. Can't be. No. James looked scared. His hands were in his lap, shaking. Mr. Fortescue shook his head.  
  
"Apparation has been down for about 3 hours. Seems a bloody chap shut down the system, without even knowing it. All I know is, the systems down and they're trying to fix it. I don't know if there is any other way your father could get here, or your mother. I suppose you could rent a room back in the Leaky Cauldron for a night, until the systems up, otherwise, looks like you two are stuck in Diagon Alley without parents." Mr. Fortescue paused again, looked at the wall, on which hung a magical calendar. "AH, but no! Tomorrow is September 1. You go back to school tomorrow! This won't due at all." Mr. Fortescue spotted James and Sirius's owls. "Send your folks a letter, saying that the systems down. And, that you're stuck in Diagon Alley, and school starts tomorrow. Do you have your tickets?" He added with a final thought.  
  
James shook his head. Sirius looked at his shoes. He hadn't known school started tomorrow. He had only gotten his letter today! August 29! The thought made him nervous.  
  
"No sir. We don't have them. We'll put that in our letters as well. Thanks for the help and the ice cream!" James said. Florean walked off to help a band of customers that walked in. James turned to Sirius with a serious look on his face.  
  
"How are we supposed to pull this off? School starts tomorrow, we haven't got tickets, we stranded in Diagon Alley. What a lovely day this is!" James rolled his eyes and pulled his owl closer to him. He pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill. James read a loud what he wrote.  
  
"Dear Mum,  
I am stranded in Diagon Alley with a new friend. His name is Sirius Black. I don't know if you know his father, Theodore Black. We've met with Florean Fortescue, who told us Apparation is down. School starts tomorrow, or so we've been told, and we don't have our tickets. I know the Floo Powder's run out, so you have no means of getting here. I guess we'll spend the night in a room in the Leaky Cauldron. I have enough gold, don't worry. Sirius and I were just getting worried about our parents. Please send Hogwarts Express Tickets with my new owl!  
  
Thanks, James  
  
How's that sound mate? I think it sounds happy enough to make her not worried. What a bloody bad piece of luck we're in though." James finished his letter, just as Sirius had. They tied their rolls of parchment to their owls' legs and opened a nearby window to let them out.  
  
"I think it sounds lovely! Hope my dad doesn't worry though. I know my mom won't, she's too worried about my brother Regulus. She so sure that he'll become the next Minister of Magic, she's bought him a nametag already. It reads: Regulus Black: Minister of Magic in England." Sirius made a gagging noise and James laughed.  
  
"How lousy. I haven't got any brothers or sisters, mate, so I don't know what you're wining about. Well, if we are to spend the night in the Leaky Cauldron, I suppose we better get walking." James packed up all of his purchases, his new wand on top. Sirius shoved his new black wand in an inside pocket of his robes, and carried his empty owl cage. James pushed his glasses up and they were off.  
  
Despite the fact that they had only met 4 hours before, Sirius felt that James was becoming a true friend. Sirius had never really had any real friends. His mother never let him make contact with a muggle. His mother pushed all of the 'friends' Sirius had had, at him. They had been all purebloods, all magical. Sirius didn't care how is friends were brought up, whether they were pureblood or muggle born, or even whether they had a criminal past. All he wanted was a friend.  
  
Once they reached the Leaky Cauldron, it was beginning to get considerably darker. The sun was going down slowly, and the shop owners began to light the torches hung out by their windows. James opened the squeaky back door to the pub and held it open for Sirius. Sirius, who was holding many packages, didn't see James put his foot out, as to trip him. Sirius went tumbling, but inside of being furious, he started to laugh. James snorted with laughter as he helped Sirius off of his back. They picked up Sirius's packages and walked into the Leaky Cauldron.  
  
Inside, Tom, the bartender, recognized them and acknowledged them. He waved a great arm with welcome. The bar was still light, illuminated by many floating candles. James heaved his bags onto a nearby empty table and walked up to the bar. Sirius dumped his stack of bags onto the same table and sat down in a scrubbed chair. He watched James walk up to the bar. Tom turned to him.  
  
"Hello, Tom. The Apparation Network is down, so our parents are stuck at home, and we're stuck here. Can we rent a room for one night?" Tom smiled his toothless smile. He wiped his hands on the rag, and gave James a key.  
  
"The charge?" James asked, looking worried. The bartender shook his head.  
  
"Don't worry about it. Looks like you two have had enough trouble for one day. That key's to room number 17." Tom pointed to a dark hallway to the left of the bar. "Go down that hallway, and to the right. You can't miss your room. Tell Sirius there that I said hello."  
  
James looked positively gleeful when he returned to Sirius. He picked up his bags and led Sirius down the hallway. It was a dark hallway with one torch on the end. The door on the end had a shiny number 17 on it and James placed his packages down on the ground and shoved the key into the lock. He turned it and it clicked. He shoved the door open revealing a medium sized room with two twin beds a wardrobe. There were candles floating near the ceiling, unlit. A mirror hanging on the wall was snoring.  
  
"How do we get the candles to come down?" James asked curiously. Although he had come from a pureblood family, they lived in a farmhouse, with electricity. Sirius, having lived in a wizard house all of his life, knew how.  
  
"Down." He said softly. The candles floated downward slowly. Sirius grinned. This was his time to show that he could do magic. He reached for his wand and said "Lumos" the wand lighting spell. A flame appeared at Sirius's wand tip and he laughed. He spread his wand from candle to candle, lighting each one. James looked impressed that his friend knew a spell.  
  
"You knew how to do that? I mean, I grew up in a pureblood family, but I never learned a spell. How'd you do that? That was awesome, mate!" James patted Sirius on the back, as he told the candles to return to their normal height. (UP)  
  
While waiting for their train tickets, they talked about Hogwarts. James knew a lot more about it then Sirius did. Sirius listened anxiously as James explained to him.  
  
"There are 4 houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Your house is kinda like your home while your there. The worst one to land in though is Slytherin You-Know-Who was in Slytherin. It spits out the darkest wizards. I'd say I'd want to land in Gryffindor, they're known for they're bravery and intelligence. Ravenclaw wouldn't be bad either. But Hufflepuff, on the other hand." Sirius, wanting to know what was wrong with Hufflepuff, interrupted.  
  
"What's wrong with Hufflepuff?" Sirius questioned loudly. James laughed at this sudden outburst.  
  
"Well lets see, 1st, their mascot is a badger, 2nd, most of them are dunderheads, 3rd, their Quidditch team is horrible. If I landed in Hufflepuff, I'd force them to sort me again."  
  
"I see. Well, looks like the two you'd want to be sorted into are Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. Tell me about them!" Sirius was all ears. James went on explaining Gryffindor. "Gryffindor is by far the best house. Their colors are scarlet and gold, and their mascot's a lion. Their Quidditch team isn't bad. The members are rivals with the Slytherins, and most of them wouldn't ever cross over." James paused to breathe, having never spoken this much in his whole lifetime.  
  
"What do you mean cross over? I've never heard the term before." Sirius was very clueless in the Wizarding world. His father never spoke about it and his mother refused to explain. James's mood turned suddenly very serious. James lifted a hand to pull his hair out of in front of his glasses. He sighed and got up to sit on his bed. He sat cross-legged and leaned against the wall.  
  
"I can't believe your parents didn't tell you. You do know who You-Know-Who is right? Cause if not, something is seriously wrong with your parents." James looked at his new friend. Sirius nodded vigorously. You-Know-Who was a dark wizard with terrible power.  
  
"Okay, then, we'll start when You-Know-Who began gaining power. So, when he began rising up the power pole, he needed supporters. And, well, you know, dark wizards very well can't just go handing out leaflets about joining them can they? So he thought up of ways to find them. He tortured some, cheated, lied, and sneaked. Many families were lost. My own grandparents refused to join him and they were murdered. Many of his supporters were fooled into joining them, blackmailed, if you will." James sighed. "Crossing over means to join the dark side. Not because of blackmail, torturing, lying, cheating, but, because you want to. Because you felt that he has the right idea."  
  
Sirius looked at the floor, James had been touched by You-Know-Who. He had lost someone. Had Sirius? Sure, just last week, his Aunt and Uncle's family had been murdered. His cousin.  
  
It took some while for Sirius to find his voice. "I know what you feel mate. Just last week, my Aunt and Uncle refused, and their whole family was found dead in the kitchen..." Sirius's voice trailed off. It was hard for him to talk about it. He could imagine how James felt. James looked up.  
  
"I'm sorry. I didn't know. Look at us. Blubbering. School starts tomorrow and look at us. Let's get some cheer into this room." James still looked gloomy, but he stood up anyway.  
  
Then, a fluttering of wings entered the room, and James' owl landed softly on his bed. Both boys looked up, and saw Sirius's owl float down onto his shoulder. Each owl had a letter tied to his or her leg.  
  
"Ah, look who's arrived. What have you named your owl?" Sirius relieved his owl of the scroll and waited for James's answer.  
  
"Duke, I think suits him. What about you?" James untied the letter from his owl's leg and ripped it open.  
  
"Mines a female, so, how about Gwen? I think it's nice." Sirius opened his letter and read it to himself.  
  
Dear Son,  
It's hard to believe that tomorrow's your first day of school. I'm sorry your stranded there, but it sounds like you've found yourself a nice friend. We'll send along the rest of your trunk to meet you at Platform 9 and ¾. Enclosed are your train tickets, I am so sorry I didn't get to see you off, but I do hope you got your shopping down. I hope you have a good first year. I don't mind if you stay at Hogwarts for the Christmas or Easter Holidays. Your mother says good bye as well.  
Love, Father  
James's letter was almost exactly the same. His mother wrote it, but his father didn't write a word. Not that it mattered; James's father was a very busy man. He hardly ever saw him during Quidditch season.  
  
Sirius couldn't wait for the next day. They talked for another hour and then, without any food of any kind, both boys went to bed early. James took off his glasses and placed them on the windowsill. With a last rumple of his hair, James laid back on his pillow.  
  
Sirius on the other hand, took a great deal of time-consuming preparations to go to bed. He took of his necklace and placed it next to James's glasses. He brushed his hair out of his eyes and shook his head to make his hair messy. Sirius coughed about 20 times. This made James laugh so hard, that tears formed in his eyes. James watched his friend get ready for bed.  
  
"Does it always take you this long to get to bed?" he managed to say between laughs. Sirius gave him a look that threw daggers. James replied with a look that could have peeled wallpaper. Then, Sirius called the candles down, one last time to blow them out. Once the room was dark, the two boys fell asleep. 


	2. The Train and the Hat

Ah yes, I have actually updated! WAHOOOOOOOOOO! Soon we will meet my infamous character that no one has heard of, Camellia Dale! Got to go set off some of Fred and George's fireworks.... hope I don't blow up anything...  
  
Chapter Two Hogwarts Express  
  
The next day, Tom the barkeep awakened both boys. He carelessly walked back to their room, opened the door with a spare key and clapped his hands. The shutters immediately responded, flinging wide open letting sunlight flood the room. James hurriedly awoke, throwing back his blankets and jumping out of bed. It took more than sunlight to wake Sirius Black; so, James threw his pillow at him, knocking over Gwen's cage.  
  
"OY! What was that for?" Sirius said, throwing his own pillow back at James, who ducked. Sirius slowly got out of his bed, making it a great deal harder than it had to be. James was already dressed; was packing the rest of his things in his trunk, which had arrived late last night.  
  
"When are you getting your trunk? You can't obviously carry your things into Platform 9 and ¾ like that! It will draw attention." James questioned, as Sirius dressed leisurely. James rolled his eyes at Sirius, who stuck out his tongue in retaliation.  
  
It was 8:00 by the time they had gotten everything ready to go. Once or twice, Sirius wondered how they were getting to King's Cross.  
  
"James, how are we...erm...getting to King's Cross? I mean we very well can't drive! And there's no way to Floo Powder over. So I guess we can't use magic." Sirius finally cracked and asked.  
  
When James didn't reply immediately, Sirius knew James had something up his sleeve, so didn't question it any further. Seeing as Sirius didn't have his own trunk to put his packages in, James lent him a space in his own. Sirius squeezed all of his purchases in a tiny corner of James's leather trunk. At 9:00, Tom brought the boys breakfast. Sirius stuffed his face with two pieces of toast and jam, and then gulped down a glass of milk. James was starving, so he eat almost as much as Sirius did. At 10:00, an hour before the Hogwarts Express left, they gathered their things and piled them outside of the Leaky Cauldron.  
  
"So, you never answered my question. Exactly how are we getting to King's Cross?" Sirius stared at James with a confused look on his face. James simply looked at the busy street.  
  
"We are taking a cab. I have enough muggle money. It should be interesting though. I mean, it's not as though our owls' cages are normal in the muggle world. I hope the cab driver doesn't ask questions." James said, as he waved down a cab. He peeked his head into the window asking how much a drive to King's Cross would be. "Excuse me, sir? How much would a drive to the King's Cross Station be?" James said politely. The driver, who was looking out of his windshield, turned to James.  
  
"Uh...I couldn't give you an exact amount. Just hop in and I'll take you and your buddy to King's Cross. You can just pile your stuff in the trunk." The driver indicated for James and Sirius to get in the car. Sirius looked a bit reproachful, he hadn't ever ridden in a cab before. James noticed the look on his friend's face.  
  
"It's alright, just help me with my stuff, and then we can go to the station." James said in a whisper. Sirius grabbed an end of the trunk, the owl cages balanced on top. James grabbed the other end and jammed his trunk into the back of the car. Then, they grabbed the cages and carried them into the backseat of the car. Once inside, they realized that this was going to be a long ride. The car bounced uncomfortably. The seats were scratchy, and James and Sirius were wedged in the backseat with two considerably large birdcages.  
  
It took a good 20 minutes to get to the train station. When they arrived, Sirius flung open his door and leaped out of the car. James slowly got out and went around the car to pull out his trunk. Sirius helped James carry his trunk.  
  
"How do you reckon we get to Platform 9 and ¾?" James asked, looking between Platform 9 and 10. Again, Sirius knew the answer.  
  
"My father told me how once. You just run at the barrier between Platform 9 and 10. Then, you'll go through on to Platform 9 and ¾." Sirius explained, as if this was the most obvious answer in the world. James looked at Sirius like his was crazy.  
  
"You're off your rocker, mate." He said, as Sirius picked up his end of James's trunk. James grabbed the handle and lifted it up. "Well, let's see if your maniac idea works. If it doesn't..." But what James would do to Sirius, Sirius never found out, because at that moment, Sirius bounded at the barrier and went through.  
  
A giant red steam engine materialized in front of James's eyes. It had the words HOGWARTS EXPRESS printed in gold lettering on the front of the engine. James turned to look at Sirius, who was breathing heavily from running. There was an amazed look on Sirius's face, as though he was surprised that his idea worked.  
  
All along the platform were witches and wizards seeing their children off. A wizard with a white poster in hand that read: 'SIRIUS BLACK' was standing next to a trunk. Sirius ran to the man and smiled. "Hello sir. I'm Sirius. Can I have my trunk?" Sirius pointed to the black leather trunk the man was standing in front of. The man, one of Theodore's friends, smiled at Sirius and shook his hand. "Of course. Here's a package from your mother, and a note. Have a good year, Sirius!" The man handed Sirius a small paper bag, with a scroll tied to it. Sirius dragged his trunk next to James. "Got your trunk? Good. Now let's find a way onto the train." James said, dragging his trunk along behind him.  
  
Once in a while, Sirius would catch snippets of their conversation. One elderly wizard was shoving his two twin daughters at the train saying "Goodbye Anna and Bella. Have a good year at Hogwarts. Don't cause mischief!" A younger mother was helping her blonde son onto the train, waving. "Bye Luicius!"  
  
Once they found an entrance to the train, James spoke up. "Well, let's get on it then. We better hope there's an empty compartment, cause I don't feel like sitting next to a Slytherin." James led the way onto the train searching all along it. Finally an empty compartment was found. It was midway along the train.  
  
"This one's okay." They piled their trunks into a luggage space and collapsed onto the cushiony seats. Sirius looked out at all of the parents waving goodbye to their children. James sighed and laid his head back on the chair. The train started to move.  
  
A boy about their age popped his head into their compartment. He had reddish brown hair with golden eyes. His hair was fluffy and looked like he hadn't run a comb through it. He had dark shadows under his eyes, as though he hadn't slept in days. His robes looked used, and his shoes looked 2 sizes to big for him.  
  
"Do you mind if I sit in here? Everywhere else is full." He voice was soft, as though he hardly ever used it. James shrugged. Sirius nodded. Why not, they could use some more people any way. It was getting boring, staring out the window.  
  
"Sure. What's your name? I'm James Potter, and this is Sirius Black." James motioned to Sirius, who turned his attention to the newcomer. The boy opened the compartment door and shoved his trunk into the luggage space. He sat down next to James.  
  
"I'm Remus Lupin. Isn't your dad on England's Quidditch team?" He asked eyeing, James's Quidditch shirt. Remus looked at James with an amazed look on his face. James laughed.  
  
"Yeah, he is. Don't you know that I get that a lot?" he laughed, answering Remus's question. Remus laughed with him. Sirius grinned. Remus looked about the compartment and asked another question.  
  
"Are you a pureblood? Or a muggle-born?" he asked, turning to Sirius, who was rubbing his head contently. Remus watched Sirius for a while until Sirius sighed, and rolled his eyes.  
  
"I'm a pureblood, but the way my mum acts about me, you would think I was a muggle. How `bout you Remus? We all know Jim here is. Quidditch Master!" Sirius chortled. Remus shook his head as he laughed. James snickered.  
  
"My mum's a witch and my dad's a wizard, but my Uncle Brian is a muggle. So answer that for yourself." He shot a glare in Sirius's general direction. Sirius just waved it off. "James? Have you got your own broom? I have, but my dad made me keep it at home." James yawned and rubbed his arm.  
  
"Yeah, I got my own broom. It's not very good, compared to the one my dad's got, but I'll take it. I wish first years could play on the house Quidditch teams." James said, thoughtfully looking out of the window, watching fields roll by.  
  
Around noon, the witch with the food trolley rolled by. She slid open the door to find two boys fast asleep, and the other paging through Standard Book of Spells Grade 1. It was Remus Lupin who was leafing through the book, and Sirius Black and James Potter were snoring in their sleep. Remus looked up from the page about Wand Lighting Spells.  
  
"Hello? Anything off the trolley?" the witch said in a pleasant tone. Remus paid for a stack of Cauldron Cakes. The witch slid the door closed and kept rolling along. Once she was gone, Remus threw one at Sirius. It hit him square in the forehead. He snorted awake.  
  
"Hey! What's this?" Sirius found the Cauldron Cake that was sitting in his lap. He held it up for Remus to see. Remus laughed, rolled his eyes, and then explained to Sirius. "The witch with the food trolley just came by. I bought a stack of Cauldron Cakes. I threw one at you thinking you would be hungry." Remus clarified to Sirius. Sirius shook James awake violently. James groggily stood up, yawned, and stretched. James sat back down on the cushiony maroon seat. Remus threw a Cauldron Cake at James, who caught it.  
  
"Thanks mate!" he said, pushing up his glasses. As they ate silently, a girl with chin length brown hair slid open their compartment door. She had blue eyes. She was already in her Hogwarts uniform.  
  
"Hullo!" said Sirius, through a mouthful of Cauldron Cake. He waved at her. Remus and James waved as well. She crossed her arms and smiled at them.  
  
"Hello. I'm Camellia Dale. You haven't by any chance seen a snowy owl fly past? She got loose again." She said all of this rather fast. Sirius was still staring at her. Remus was listening intensively. James's attention was lost; he was staring outside the window.  
  
"Hi Camellia. I'm Sirius Black. That's Remus Lupin," Sirius said, pointing at Remus. "And that's James Potter." He pointed to James, who was oblivious that his name had been mentioned. Camellia looked about the compartment for a while, then asked about her owl.  
  
"So you haven't seen a snowy owl? That bloody bird's going to cause me more stress than all year at school." Camellia plopped down in a seat beside Sirius. "Is this seat taken? I hope not, `cause I'm not moving. I've been up and down this bloody train 6 times!" She threw her hands up in the air. She then drew her attention to James.  
  
"Is he related to Robert Potter? The Quidditch player?" Camellia raised an eyebrow. She finally sent Sirius's Cauldron Cake wrapper in James's direction. It hit him in the side of the face, causing him to turn at look at them. He was startled by Camellia's appearance in the compartment.  
  
"How? Who's? What's going on!" He stared at her. Camellia smiled and waved sarcastically. Sirius sniggered at James's response to Camellia. Remus shut his book with a snap that made everyone jump.  
  
"Well, James, Camellia came in when you were so absentmindedly looking out of the window. She even asked you a question, but you were too bloody busy staring at the field of cows..." James cocked his head and gave a confused look at Remus. Everyone was staring at James. Sirius rolled his eyes.  
  
"Are you going to give Camellia an answer or not?" he said exasperated. James still looked really confused. He turned to Camellia.  
  
"I'm sorry. What was the question?" James sat up straight, determined to pay attention. Camellia smiled at him. It was cute how oblivious he was. So she sat up straight and asked the same question.  
  
"Are you related to Robert Potter? You look a lot like him." Camellia put her hands in her lap. James rested his head on his hands. He looked up at her and smiled.  
  
"Yeah. It's not as fun as you think it might be though. During Quidditch season, I hardly ever see him. And when I do, he forgets who I am. He forgot my birthday last year, and Christmas. He's a really good player though. I play too, but I doubt I'll ever play as good as him. Why do you ask though? Did you meet him or something?" James sat back up, waiting for Camellia's response.  
  
"Yeah. I've met him. Not to be mean or anything, but he wasn't very nice. I asked him for his autograph and he pushed me out of the way. My mum was furious. I was only 7 at the time. I'll tell you though, your father can sure beat a bludger." Camellia sighed, thinking of the memory.  
  
A long silence was after this remark. Camellia shrugged, and got up.  
  
"I'll guess I'll go find Emma then." She looked at her watch. "You better start changing into your robes, you know. We only have 10 minutes left. See you at Hogwarts!" She waved, leaving them. After she left them, Sirius broke out in fits of hysterical laughter. James watched him nervously, scared of his friends mental state.  
  
"What's so funny?" asked Remus, looking over the top of his book. Sirius stopped laughing, but was red in the face. He pointed at James. James, who had been dressing in his school robes, stopped moving.  
  
"You are so oblivious. It's funny." Sirius laughed to himself. James started moving again. Remus was shaking his head, while strapping his cloak on.  
  
"Sirius, mate, get dressed. Stop laughing."  
  
At exactly 6:00, the sky was darkening and the train rolled to a stop. The pistons hissed while a magically loud voice permeated throughout the train.  
  
"Please exit the train. Leave all luggages on the train. Have a good year!" Sirius, Remus, and James jumped off the train and stood out on the Platform. They heard a booming voice call out over the crowd.  
  
"Firs` years! Firs` years! This way please!" A giant sized man stood 2 feet above everyone else. He had a ragged black beard with a matted mess of hair. He was wearing a moleskin overcoat and boots the size of smallish dolphins. Sirius looked up at this man, amazed.  
  
"Who do you reckon that is?" he whispered into James's ear. James shrugged; not knowing who it was either. The man led the first years to a small dock, where about 50 undersized boats were roped to the dock.  
  
"Four to a boat! Four to a boat!" the man bellowed. Sirius, James, and Remus all clambered into a boat, followed by another boy, with white blonde hair and freckles. The giant man took up one boat by himself. With one wave of a bright pink umbrella, the boats shook to life. They moved slowly but surely across the wide lake. A large rock appeared, obscuring Sirius's first view of Hogwarts. James tugged Sirius to the side, revealing a huge castle with many sparkling lights and towers. The light from all the windows gave the castle a gleaming look. Sirius gave a small "Oh!" when they moved even closer.  
  
When they arrived at the dock, they only had a short way to walk to the main entrance of the castle. The giant led them to a large set of thick wooden doors. He pounded on the door with a humongous hand. Sirius could hear a large echoing of the sound from the other side of the door. Then, the door squeaked open, to revel a small witch with her hair pinned back in a bun. She had on bottle green robes and a black pointed hat.  
  
"The firs` years Professor McGonagall." The giant waved a great arm over their heads and nodded at the witch. She looked nervous. Professor McGonagall waved the man off, beckoning to the crowd of first years.  
  
"Yes, well come inside, just here, don't go any farther. I'll explain what you're about to do inside." Her voice was scratchy almost hoarse. Sirius, Remus, and James followed the witch inside. Once everyone was inside, she started to explain. "I am Professor Minerva McGonagall. This is my first year at Hogwarts, so I am just as nervous as you. The process that you are about to do is called the Sorting. There are Four Houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Your house will be your family while you are at Hogwarts. Now please wait here, while I go see if they're ready for you." The professor left, leaving the crowd of nervous first years whispering to each other.  
  
Sirius looked about the hall. It was large and made out of a pewter grey stone. There were torches every now and again, and they were standing on a great rug with the Hogwarts crest upon it. Then, Sirius turned to ask Remus what house he would like to be in.  
  
"Remus, we never asked you, what house do you want to land in?" Sirius elbowed James, who turned to them. Remus looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. What house did he want to be in? He never really thought of that.  
  
"I'd say probably Gryffindor. I heard they're the best." Remus ran a hand through his red-brown mane of hair. Sirius nodded, James said "Uh-Huh." Then, Professor McGonagall came back into the room. She beckoned for them to follow. She threw open wide wooden doors that were the entrance into the Great Hall.  
  
Sirius's eyes grew wide at the sight of the Great Hall. It was huge. When Sirius looked up, he thought there was no ceiling to the room. The ceiling was imitating the sky outside. It showed a darkening sky with stars sprinkled about. There were candles, like the ones at the Leaky Cauldron, were floating illumining the space. There were four tables, over which hung tapestries with each house's mascot. The second one in from the left was Gryffindor. Next to Gryffindor was Ravenclaw, and then Hufflepuff, to the other side of Gryffindor was Slytherin. A great silver serpent was curled into an 'S' on their tapestry. However, in front of the house tables was an enormous table, the banner behind which showed the Hogwarts Crest.  
  
Professor McGonagall set down a three-legged stool with a thunk. She placed a ragged old hat on it. She stepped aside and stared at the hat. A large rip near the brim opened and it broke out in song.  
  
The minute the hat was done, applause broke out in the hall. It only stopped when Professor McGonagall spoke up.  
  
"First years, I will call out your name, and you will sit on the stool. Put on the hat and it will shout your house!" Then the sorting began. Sirius was starting to get nervous. What if he didn't land in the same house as James? Or Remus? McGonagall called out the first name.  
  
"Abnee, Abina!" A short blonde haired girl ran up to the stool and pulled the hat over her ears. The hat paused, and then shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF" Applause started as Abina ran off to join the Hufflepuff table.  
  
"Ashley, Greg!" A black boy ran up to the stool and put on the hat. The hat shouted immediately "RAVENCLAW!" Sirius knew whose name was coming next. Everyone always pronounced it wrong. He waited for the butchering of the name.  
  
"Black, Sirius!" Sirius sighed; it wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. He walked out to the stool, picked up the hat, placed it on his head and waited. Ah, what do we have here? A young Black. Well, let me look...bravery, a certain disregard for the rules, intelligence, I'd have to say you belong in GRYFFINDOR! Sirius let out a sigh of relief. He was in the best house, Gryffindor. Now all that needed to happen was for Remus and James to be in the same house.  
  
Sirius ran to join the mass of scarlet and gold clad students. He sat down next to an older student, with mangy red hair. The boy looked at him.  
  
"Hullo." He said as Bernhard, Riley was being sorted into Slytherin. Sirius nodded and turned his attention to the next person being sorted.  
  
"Dale, Camellia!" Sirius whipped his head around to stare at the girl walking towards the stool. He was confused. That certainly didn't look like the Camellia Dale he had met on the train. This Camellia had bright blonde hair with green eyes. The Camellia on the train had light brown hair and blue eyes. That hat shouted out GRYFFINDOR, and Camellia came to join the table. She sat across from Sirius.  
  
"On the train you had light brown hair! What's going on!?" He asked, looking majorly confused. Camellia laughed.  
  
"I'm a Metamorphagus. Don't worry; you're not off your onion." She explained, seeing the confused look on Sirius's face. She went on, "Metamorphgi are really rare, you have to be born one. Metamorphgi can change their appearance at will. See watch!" Camellia screwed up her eyes in a pained expression, and her hair turned light brown and shrank to chin length. Sirius jumped so hard his knee hit the table.  
  
"Wow." He said. But at that moment, Professor McGonagall called out "Lupin, Remus!" Sirius and Camellia turned around to see Remus walking up to the stool, looking paler than ever. He shoved the hat on his head and waiting patiently. Lupin is it? Well, let's take a look at what we have. Bravery, intelligence, mischief. I'll say GRYFFINDOR! Sirius clapped so hard, his hands tingled. Remus came and sat down on the other side of Sirius. Remus waved lightly at Camellia, who smiled. All James had to do was get into Gryffindor as well. The next 10 minutes were used up with names that begin with M, N, or O. Remus turned to Sirius as McBell, Anna was being sorted. Remus waited till the hat was done, RAVENCLAW, and then spoke to Sirius.  
  
"You know, James better well get into Gryffindor. It will be boring without him." Remus whispered. Sirius agreed, the friendship they made in the past 2 days would be worth nothing if he didn't make Gryffindor. The next name was "Pettigrew, Peter." A small boy with bleach blonde hair scurried up to the hat and stool. He sat down, and put the hat lightly on his head. The hat shouted out GRYFFINDOR! Peter came to join the Gryffindor table.  
  
"POTTER, JAMES!" Professor McGonagall screeched. James, who was as white as one of the pearly ghosts, strided up to the stool. He sat down and pulled the hat over his ears. The hat remained silent for a long while, but then, whispered into James's ear.  
  
"A Potter do we have...yes, I see the Quidditch talent. I see that you have a certain disregard of the rules. There is also much bravery hidden in your heart. Intelligence, as well. I'll put you in GRYFFINDOR!" the hat bellowed the last word, sending a ringing throughout James's entire body. He grinned wildly as he sat the hat back down on the stool, and scampered to the Gryffindor table.  
  
Sirius and Remus were smiling so hard that they're face hurt, when they heard that James made it into Gryffindor. When James sat down next to Remus, Sirius clapped him on the back.  
  
"Glad you could join us oh Jamesie-poo!" he said jokingly. James rolled his eyes at his friend and laughed along with him.  
  
Ah yes, an interesting way to end a chapter...oh well you'll just have to deal with it until I can get over this writer's block. Please review me, or else I'll have to set my flying monkeys with rabies on you. (Oh well you caught me. I don't really have flying monkeys with rabies, but I do have a unintelligent cat!) 


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